Does The Correct Glass Really Make a Difference?

Yes! For most people it does make a big difference.

You can believe anything you want to believe if the truth doesn’t matter to you. But truth is a slippery thing and the only truth that matters is yours! When you enjoy wine, the only thing that matters is how it tastes to you. We host fun events that to help customers compare the taste of the same wine from the same bottle in different glasses. We find that almost all wine drinkers easily perceive differences in the taste of the wine made by the glasses. See for yourself in side-by-side comparisons.

What specifically makes the difference?

Size matters, but it’s not the only thing. You will see a wide array of opinion on what the BestWineGlass is, but to us the BestWineGlass is the one that’s best for you and takes into consideration every possible aspect from the purely practical to the essentially esoteric. We wouldn’t think of drinking wine from anything but an appropriately shaped glass for each basic variety and specialty type, but beyond that, everything about the glass and even where we drink makes a difference in which glasses we bring out. Metal, plastic, glass and crystal all play legitimate roles in enjoying wine, beer and liquor. See Anatomy of a Wine Glass for a discussion about what specifically makes the difference.

How many different glasses do I really need?

That depends on you and how well developed your palate is. I have a 25 year-old Schwinn bicycle that serves my every need for a bike. I have a friend who owns 3 different bikes each costing over $2,000. He logs more hours on his bicycles than I do in my car and on my boat combined. He drinks wine once or twice a year and only enjoys one type. He only needs one glass and may as well save himself the trouble by drinking from the water bottle from his bike:) The rest of us easily detect differences between at least three wine glasses, four if you count sparkling wines. Some of us can detect subtle differences in 5-7 glasses and a few of us can perceive differences in many more. Learn specifically what effects the taste of your wine and how you enjoy it best. Try our tasting sets to find out.

Why are there so many and which are right for me?

Again, that depends on how attuned you are to subtle differences. It also depends on what’s important to you. Are you an engineer type for whom only practical concerns are relevant? Perhaps you are a more artistic type for whom aesthetic concerns are important. Image can be very important too and esteem needs should not be overlooked. Perhaps you are among the truly self-actualized for whom all of these concerns play out in different settings among different groups.

Enjoying wine is a luxury. If our only need was to get it into our mouths, few of us would bother with a glass at all. As a luxurious experience, many aspects drive our oenophilia. The experience pleases, entertains and delights us and the physical attributes of the glass play a sublime but critical role. Grab a glass, pour some wine and let’s consciously indulge our wine-snobbiness because we like it.

I am constantly amazed at how different wines can taste in different glasses. I cannot count how many times that I have been disappointed by wines served either in inferior or inappropriate wine glasses, both in restaurants and in private houses.

Dessert wines are luscious after-dinner drinks that will linger on your palate more deliciously than any mousse, cake or pie. Once you start sampling dessert wines, with or without a perfectly paired dessert, you may just find that you’d rather drink dessert than eat it.